Illuminate
by Kaytoko
Summary: Sometimes love burns brightest in the darkness. Zutara. One-shot


_Illuminate_

A/N: Ahhh this reminds me of when I used to write a lot of Zutara ~ This story is also posted on my tumblr (which I have a link for in my profile page)

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There were few times after the fall of Ozai that the gang saw each other all at the same time. Even at their young ages, they were pulled every which way to continue keeping the peace. Colonization talks in the south of Earth Kingdom; rebuilding excavations to the smaller villages along the coastlines; world meetings at the Northern Water Tribes; expansion plans for the Southern Water Tribe; and political stability talks in the Fire Nation. Out of the five years that followed the end of the 100 year war, there had been less than five times that the old gang had seen each other at the same time. So when Zuko invited them to the Fire Nation to witness the Festival of the Lunar Fireflies, nearly all of them jumped on the chance to visit each other again. Especially since there was food involved.

"Man, I haven't been back to the Fire Nation in years," Sokka commented around a mouthful of food. He took another large bite out of the barbequed pig rooster he carried around on a stick. His exclamations of approval for its flavor made his sister roll her eyes.

"Oh, please. You were just here four months ago with me and Dad," she pointed out.

Sokka paused as he went to take another bite. "Oh yeah. I forgot about that."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I haven't been back here since the colony talks three years ago," Suki piped up from beside Sokka. "It's really nice to be back for a recreational reason instead of a political one."

Katara gave her a thoughtful smile, realizing she was right. In all those years, they all had been so busy that it was hard to keep track of how many _fun_ things they still did. Katara herself had become an ambassador for the Southern Water Tribes, traveling around to the different nations to hold talks of peace and cooperative prosperity. She had been back a countless number of times to the Fire Nation, her most recent return being only two weeks prior. While she enjoyed her job, it didn't leave much room for relaxation and mindless pleasure. Actually having a chance to let loose a bit made her long for the old days when they still traveled the world on Appa's back.

She frowned slightly, realizing she hadn't seen Aang yet that night. "Have you guys seen Aang? Or Toph for that matter?"

"Oh, you know how they are," Sokka said, waving his barbequed meat. "Always fashionably late for everything and probably riding on the back of some feral beast that will destroy something so utterly that we'll have to pay for it in the end. You know. The usual."

Avatar or not, Aang still held a lot of his childish qualities that kept him lighthearted and happy. There were a number of times he had been caught during meetings playing with Momo under the table, or bringing an unusual item with him to goof around with. He took things seriously when he had to, but for the most part, he was still just Aang, the kid they'd met in the iceberg. After the fall of Ozai, he and Katara had stayed together for as long as they could. But, their jobs had them going different places for too long and spending too little time together started to wear upon them. Toph joined Aang on his journeys, not quite finished traveling the world herself, and soon, after seeing them joking around together with an ease that didn't exist for her and him anymore, Katara started to realize that things just weren't the way they used to be. It had broken his heart when they finally parted ways, but it had been for the best. Three years later, she was starting to see the buds of romance blossoming between the youngest of her friends, and while it made her happy to see that they were moving on together, they were still a little too dense to make anything of it quite yet.

"Here."

Katara blinked out of her revere to see Sokka holding out a barbequed fish. "C'mon Katara! It's a festival! Enjoy yourself a little bit instead of just looking around like you can't find somebody."

She gave him a half smile, and took the fish, uncomfortable by how spot-on his assessment had been. Truth was, she _was_ looking for somebody. The same person that made her stays in the Fire Nation the most enjoyable trips she had ever been on after the end of the war. But she wasn't about to admit that quite yet. At least, not to Sokka.

She had to admit though, the festival itself was beautiful. The central plaza of the capital city was already a stunning place with its beautifully designed brick walkways, carved-stone fountain and the brilliant red and gold shrine centered right at the forefront. But that evening, it shone with an even brighter splendor. Tiny lanterns hung upon branches and strings, lighting up the plaza with their tiny tea lights like fireflies, while the scent of good food permeated the air from the small shops put up around the area. People walked around in good spirits, wearing their summer yukatas in celebration of the festivities. Excited talks of the fireworks show later that evening had people even more excited than usual, making the atmosphere so inviting and cheerful that it was hard not to get drawn in by it all.

A happy tune started playing through the air, encouraging some people to start dancing in the central of the plaza. Sokka pointed in excitement and all but drug Suki along with him to dance. They waved at her from the center of the crowd, their faces alight with joy. She waved back from the sidelines, smiling into her fish as she took a bite. It was surprisingly good, just as Sokka said it would be.

"Enjoying yourself?"

She jumped slightly at the sound of a deep voice, holding her chest as her heart beat erratically against her ribs from both surprise and the immediate recognition of who was speaking. Zuko gave her an amused smirk from where he leaned against the column she stood beside. She rolled her eyes and smacked him on the arm.

"That's not funny," she said. "I could have accidentally hurt you."

His amusement only seemed to grow. "With what? Your fish?"

She gave him a glare that was entirely unfounded by the way her lips just wouldn't stay down. "You know with what."

His golden eyes sparkled with a lighthearted enjoyment in the low lighting. He had dressed down some from his normal formalwear, wearing something akin to the outfit he used to wear when he was still traveling with the gang and plotting to take down his father. But he was much older than that kid used to be and he filled it out better, looking more like a Fire Lord than a banished prince. He certainly hadn't attempted to hide who he was from the people at the festival, his hair long around his shoulders and half-bunned into his crown to proudly wear his title for what it was. Katara noticed the whispers and the pointing in his direction, but he didn't seem to pay it any heed. He was there for the festivities, not the popularity.

"Red looks good on you," he commented, letting his eyes drop lower to appreciate her Fire Nation wear for what it was. She blushed slightly at his compliment, her heart fluttering slightly in her chest, but she scoffed, giving him a side eye.

"And I still think blue would bring out the color of your eyes," she countered.

He laughed, low and warmly. The warm feeling in her chest only grew larger at the carefree sound. Over the last few years, she had found herself enamored by those small moments when Zuko could be carefree. They were few and far between before, but they were less rare in the past few months and every moment she witnessed brought her a type of joy she wasn't entirely sure she knew. His remaining smile was just as warm as his laugh was.

"The palace has been boring without you, Katara," he said.

Her lips turned up into a smile of its own. "That's a long time for it to be boring."

His smile turned soft at her wit and he held out his hand to her. "C'mon. I have something I want to show you."

She looked down at it questioningly, trying to figure out what he was getting at. "What, you're going to invite me to see a festival and then not let me enjoy it?"

"Believe me," he said, taking her hand in his. "You're going to like this a whole lot more."

Her heart gave a soft jump at the feeling of his calloused hand against hers, but when he started to pull her through the crowd, she followed willingly, her fingers closing around his as well. It was no great secret that Zuko and Katara were close friends. In the few years following the end of the war, they spent a good deal of time together working out the intricate details to bridge communication between their two nations. Katara spent a good number of months living in the Fire Nation as an ambassador, during which she spent getting to know Zuko better since she didn't get much of a chance to while they were still on the run. Having a familiar face around eased her time apart from her friends and family, and Zuko appreciated having her around to keep things light and enjoyable when things got too stressful for him. After starting out on such rocky grounds, their friendship turned out to be a simple thing. A companionship made from two people looking for something in their lives to be just a little bit different.

Zuko led Katara through the crowd easily until the lights of the festival were left behind them, the sounds growing fainter as they walked the darker streets of the city. Katara wasn't entirely sure when things had started to change between them. It wasn't much of a change, but she started to notice that she almost unconsciously sought out his presence when she was in the Fire Nation. It had just become such a natural thing for him to be around that it felt weird when he wasn't there. Eventually, she started to notice the way her heart would jump in her chest every time his hand would accidentally brush against hers, or how easily she could pick him out of a crowd. She was no stranger to love, and falling in love with Zuko was as easy as breathing air. They walked for a good long while before Katara started to recognize where they were. She cast a glance over at the gate when they bypassed the guards without a second glance, entering the palace grounds.

"The palace?" she questioned out loud. He gave her a small smirk over his shoulder.

"Just wait."

He led her through familiar hallways, servants and guards she knew bowing to them as they passed. Katara tried not to blush too obviously about the fact that their hands were still clasped. Not much later, Zuko opened the doors to the royal quarters, a side of the palace she had never been before. Only the members of the royal family were permitted here. Zuko bypassed all the bedroom doors, to her relief, and stopped beside a pair of sliding rice paper doors. He reached up to open the doors but hesitated at the last second, turning to give Katara a sheepish look.

"Do you mind closing your eyes? I kind of want this to be a surprise."

Her heart fluttered lightly in her chest, but she opted to tease him slightly by giving him a slightly suspicious look instead of complying. "Fire Lord Zuko," she said in mock skepticism. "Are you trying to seduce me?"

He sputtered in surprise, his face going as red as the clothing he wore. She burst out into lighthearted laughter, eliciting a glare from the now entirely embarrassed Fire Lord.

"Just close your eyes already," he growled.

She did as she was told, still giggling slightly as she listened to the sound of the doors sliding open. He led her forward a few steps before his low voice softly warned her of the upcoming steps. After passing those, her feet crunched over grass and rocks as the cool night air moved against her cheeks again. She could hear the breeze blowing through leaves of a tree and the soft flow of water passing over rocks. The sound of her element brought a calmness to her mind as Zuko pulled her to a stop.

"Okay," he said softly. "Open your eyes."

She blinked a few times, adjusting her eyes to the low lighting before truly seeing what it was he wanted to show her. They stood in the middle of a beautiful garden with well-kept shrubbery and trees surrounding a calming pond where a few turtle ducks swam about calmly. But the most beautiful of it all, were the hundreds of fireflies that filled the night air. She gasped, lifting her hands over her mouth at the stunning sight.

"This is my mother's garden," he told her softly. "I used to come here a lot as a kid and I realized pretty quickly that the flowers attracted a lot of fireflies during the summer." He looked at her in the darkness, the soft light of the fireflies illuminating his face. "Do you like it?"

"Oh, Zuko," Katara said, looking up at him. "This is… this is wonderful."

"I'm glad you think so," he said softly, his smile all the more beautiful in the pale glow of the tiny lights. He turned to look out at the garden and the fireflies himself. "This place means a lot to me. You're the only person I've never shown this to." There was a beat of silence until his words caught back up to him. His eyes went wide. "I-I mean, you're not the only person I've ever _wanted_ to show—N-no, wait, that's not—"

Katara watched his face contort in embarrassment, his cheeks turning red as he stumbled over his words. He let his face fall into his hand with a restrained sigh as she laughed quietly. "You can kill me now."

She gave him a sympathetic smile. "No, no. I understand what you're trying to say."

He looked at her suspiciously, with a small dash of hope twinkling in his eyes. "You do?"

"Yeah. This garden is important to you so you want to share it with the world." He groaned and she laughed again. "Or just me."

He looked at her from between his fingers, realizing that she did, in fact, understand exactly what he was trying to say. Letting his hand slip from his face, he looked at her again, his golden eyes going oddly serious. She watched him curiously, her smile staying on her lips despite the nervousness that danced around in her stomach.

"Katara," he breathed. She tried not to make it obvious how much his voice affected her. "I…"

She waited for him to speak with bated breath, but it was like his voice had gotten stuck somewhere in his throat. He looked at her in desperation and frustration, so many unsaid things moving about in his golden eyes, but he lacked the breath, or the ability to say it. He groaned again, hanging his head.

"I am _seriously _the worst at this," he cursed to himself.

Laughing softly, Katara placed a gentle hand upon his cheek, raising his head up to look at her again. She smiled at his horribly embarrassed expression, and gently rubbed her thumb across the bottom edge of the scar that made him who he was.

"You silly boy," she said. "You don't have to say anything."

She closed her eyes and leaned in to kiss him fully on the lips. His lips were warm against hers, and she let the chaste moment linger, the warm feeling in her chest expanding until it felt like it would explode. When she finally pulled away to look into his eyes again, she saw the same expression she was sure she was already making. His cheeks red, but his eyes lidded, cast downward as they looked at her lips. For a moment, he glanced up to meet her eyes, all the turmoil in his eyes gone except for one clear message. Her heart thumped painfully against her ribs as she heard him say it out loud:

"_I think I'm in love with you_."

And with that, his fingers twisted into her hair at the nape of her neck as he tipped her head back so he could kiss her once again.


End file.
